1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to methods and systems employing flow simulation for improving material delivery in lens manufacturing.
2. The Prior Art
Software for injection molding simulation typically focuses on mold filling. The REM3D package from Transvalor includes various templates for injection, gas assisted injection, co-injection, thermal coupling with molds and cooling. In the co-injection template, the gate and mold cavity boundaries are defined, and two resins are color coded to simulate their simultaneous injection into the mold cavity. This produces a co-injection molded part with a first resin on the exterior and a second resin filling the central portion of the part. These co-injection molded parts allow resins with different mechanical properties to be combined in a single shot.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,574,339 discloses a method for creating a computerized model of a mold cavity for simulating fluid flow in the cavity. U.S. Pat. No. 6,816,820 and U.S. Patent Application Publication 2005/0082706 describe alternate methods for creating a mold cavity model for determining the number and location of gates. U.S. Pat. No. 7,277,771 discloses a simulation method for combining two materials during injection to create a foamed product. U.S. Pat. No. 7,289,874 describes a method for simulating and optimizing an in mold coating process.